Method of and apparatus for operating upon the bottoms of boots and shoes.



V J. CAVANAGH. METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR OPERATTNG UPON THE BOTTOMS 0F BOOTS AND SHOES.

APPLICATION HLEEA SEPT. 6. i911.

Patented Aug. 13, 1918.

In: NORRIS PETERS 00.. FMDYU-LIYNLZ. WASHINGWN. o. c.

our ED STATE JAMES CAVANAGH, or BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIVGLTOB, iaY ns n ASSIGNMENTS, TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY oonPonA'rIoN, or PATIJRSON; NEW JERSEY, A con,-

TEORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

METHOD OF AND APIARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON THE BOTTOMS 0F BOOTS AND SHOES. I

Application filed September 6, 1917. Serial No. 190,047.

tion, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawingsindicating like parts in the several figures. i

This invention relates to the preparation of the surface of apiece of stock such as the bottom of a boot or shoe to receive stain or other finishing material.

In the manufacture of boots and shoes it is customary to finish the tread surfaces of the soles and heel by bufling them, applying stain or other finishing material to the bufled surfaces, and then polishing the surfaces. The purpose of the buffing operation is to form a fine nap on the tread faces of the sole and heel to prepare them to receive the finishing material, but, this purpose is defeated to some extent by the dust which collects in the nap. Rotary brushes have been used in an endeavor to remove this dust but without satisfactory results. It is diflicult, if not impossible, to brush the dust out of the nap; and, to be at all effective, the brushing must be done in various directions, a treatment which greatly disturbs the nap and leaves it lying in difierent directions in different localities, whereas it is desirable that the dust should be removed without disturbing the nap more than is necessary and that,'when the stain is applied, the nap should be lying all in one direction. v

The object of the present invention is to prepare the surfaces of pieces of stock such, for example, as the bottoms of bootsv and shoes in a novel and improved manner toreceive Stain or other finishing material. To

this end a nap is firstformed on the surface,-

the nap is then raised so that the dust may be more easily dislodged, the dust is removed while the nap remains raised and then the clean nap is laid smoothly all in one direction. Preferably the nap is formed by presenting the surface to a bufiing roll, and.

the raising of the nap, the removal of the dust and the laying of the nap are accorn- Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Aug, 1918 plished by drawing thebufied' shoe across the mouth of a suction conduit onewall of said mouth being'constructed and arranged to direct a currentof air in a direction to raise the. nap and remove the dust, the opposite wall-being formed with a wiper which, as-the shoe is drawn'along, lays the nap uniform'ly in one direction; The result is asurface substantially free from dust and-have ing a nap laid, smoothly in one direction so that. the stain, when applied, 7 will produce auniform shade of color throughout the en'- tire extent of the buffed surface. Referring now to the accompanying draw 1ngs, .7

Figure 1 is a perspective of a portion of a machine for operating upon the bottoms of boots and shoes;

Fig. 2is an elevation, partly in section, showing a shoe presented to the suction conduit, and

Fig. 3 is a perspective, also partly in section, of the shoe and conduit. 7

Referring-first to Fig. 1, there is "shown a portion of the head of a buffin machine. A rotary shaft 5 driven by belt carries a buffing roll 9 having a cover of abrasive ma terial to which the bottom of the shoe is presented in order to form a napthereon. This nap gives to the bottom of the shoe a velvety surface particularly adapted to receive the stain or other finishing material which is usually applied.- A. dusthood 11 is pro vided to remove the dust thrown off by the roll,-but a considerable amount of dust becomes lodged "in the: nap. In order to remove this last-named dust from the nap as wellias to lay the clean nap uniformly in one direction, a suction conduit 13is located adjacent to the bufling roll, said conduit being connected to any suitable suction apparatus which conveniently may be the blower (not shown) connected to the outlet of the dust hood 11. The mouth of this conduit is shaped'as shown so as to permit the bottom of a shoe to be drawn across it. The rear wall of the mouth is provided with projections 15 so that when a shoe is drawn across said mouth, passages for shoe. In the illustrative machine this for- Wa d Wa l has fas t it a W per l f tel or similar yielding material which pro ects slightly below the edge of the metal to which it is fastened.

Inthe operation of the machine the bot tom of the shoe is first presented to' the bufiing roll to form a nap and is then drawn across the mouth of the suction conduit in the direction indicated by the large arrow in Fig. 8. During this movement of the shoe a current of airindicated by the small arrows in Figs. 2 and 3is drawn under the edge of the -rear wall of the mouth of the conduit in a direction to raise or lift up the nap, and this current of air passes through the raised nap and serves also to carry away the dust which has become lodged in the nap during the buffing operation. As the shoe is drawn along, this raised and cleaned nap is engaged by the wiper l7 and laid uniformly in one direction.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A method of preparing the surface of a piece of stock to receive finishing material which consists in forming a nap on the surface thereof, raising the nap by force applied in one direction, removing the dust while the nap is raised, and finally laying the nap by force applied in another direction.

2. A method of preparing the surface of a piece of stock to receive finishingmaterial which consists in forming a nap on the surface thereof, progressively raising the nap, by force applied in one direction, progressively removing the dust while the nap is raised, and. progressively laying the nap by force applied in a different direction.

3. A method of preparing the surface of a piece of stock to receive finishing material which consists in buffing the stock to form a nap on the surface thereof, directing a current of air upon said surface to raise the nap and at the same time remove the dust generated by the nap-forming opera tion, and finally laying the nap in a direction counter to that in which it was raised.

4. A machine of the class described, havin in combination, a buffing tool adapted to form a nap. on the surface of a piece of" work presented to it, and a suction conduit across the mouth of which thebuifed surface 'may be drawn, sa d conduit being located adjacent to said tool and being constructed and arranged to raise the nap and to remove from it the dust generated by the bufiing operation.

5. A machine of the class described, having, in combination, a bufling tool adapted to form a nap on the surface of a piece of work presented to it, and a suction conduit across the mouth of which the buffed surface may be drawn, one wall of the mouth being formed with a passageway to direct the current of air upon the stock to raise the nap and to remove the dust generated by the bufling operation, the opposite wall forming a substantially: tight joint with the stock.

6. A machine of the class described, having, in combination, a buffingt-ool adapted toform a nap Y on the surface of a piece of work presented to it, a suction conduit across-the mouth of which the buffed sur- 7 face may be drawn, means located on the edge of one wall of said mouth to provide passage for a current ofair beneath said edge to raise-the nap in one direction and to remove from the raised nap the dust generatedby the bufling operation, and yielding means on the opposite wall for preventing passage of air and for laying the nap in the oppositedirection. 7

7. A machine of the class described, having, in combination, a bufling tool adapted to form a nap on thesurface of a piece of work presented to it, a suction conduit across the mouth of which the buffed surface may be drawn, said conduit being located adjacent to said tool and being adapted to remove from the raised nap the dust generated by the 'bufiingoperation, and means located at the mouth'of' said conduit forlaying the nap after the removal of the dust.

8. A machine of the class described, having, in combination, mean for forming a nap on the surface of a piece of workpresented to it, and suction means for removingfrom the nap the dust which becomes" lodged in it duringthe nap forming operation;

9. A method of preparing the surface ofthen drawing the buffed surface across the mouth of a suction conduit.

In testimony whereof I have signed myname to this specification.

JAMES; OAVANAGH.

qgpj es of this patent maybe, .btained. forfive cents each, by addressing the, Commissioner of 'Batents, Wash n Die." i 

